Hey there! This is TOP episode 146: Learn English With Sting ‘Englishman In New York’
My name’s Ola and I am an online English teacher and I want you to know I believe you can eliminate your language blockade. It is 100% guaranteed. The secret word here is consistency. There are other secret words too. That is why I record this podcast’s episodes, and each comes with a little worksheet, a one-pager to help you digest and test what you’ve practised here. You can speak English with more confidence, slay that fear and enjoy new freedoms.
Visit my website for full transcripts and worksheets to each episode. Visit my shop at teacherola.com and enjoy your journey to fluency! Happy learning!
Hello hello! Good to have you here! Thank you for tapping play. You’re in the right place, you’re on the right track. Stay with me till the end of this episode for the practical part. Super important!
Find me on Instagram because every Thursday at 11 am I jump in live just for a quick chat, 20 minutes or so to discuss some language-related tips. You can watch the old Top Talks also there, I mean on Instagram or Facebook or my Youtube channel. You’ll find me as teacherola.podcast. So join me on Thursday at 11:00 live on Instagram!
Today we’re learning English with a song everybody knows. ‘Englishman in Ner York’. I’ve prepared song facts, phrases, expressions, and example sentences. But before we start let me quickly remind you there’s a Worksheet dedicated to these sentences we’re gonna practice in a while so go grab it at teacherola.com/146 or find it in your inbox.
Secondly, visit my shop, buy a Worksheet set, and have them all in one place. They’re editable. Check out my e-book with episode transcripts. Have access to 50 episode transcripts anywhere and read if that’s what you prefer.
If you’re interested in learning English with tv series check out the links below. I am working on my Speak English with Netflix course, a programme focused on one skill only, speaking.
If you’re wondering whether such a course is right for you grab a checklist, the link is in the description. Thank’s for your patience and let’s get back to the episode.
‘Englishman in New York’ by Sting was released as a single in 1988. The song is about a very famous gay Quentin Crisp who lived in England in the 1960. At that time it was very dangerous to be gay. It was against the law and Quentin got beaten a lot but still, he was always himself which was brave and remarkable. Sting met him in one film set. When Quentin was 80 he moved to New York which was another brave and extraordinary thing to do. In New York, he continued being himself. He was flamboyant in the way he dressed or expressed himself. Sting used to meet him for dinner every now and again and they would have those philosophical conversations during which Quentin would say ‘be yourself no matter what they say’.
Now we’re going to get into the lyrics. Listen and repeat each line. Repeat out loud.
I don’t drink coffee, I take tea, my dear
I like my toast done on one side
And you can hear it in my accent when I talk
I’m an Englishman in New York
I take tea – To take tea means to have, to drink, to share a tea, to sit down for tea with someone. You might also say:
I don’t take sugar in my tea.
or
I don’t take tea with sugar.
or
I take one sugar in my tea.
Well, sugar is uncountable but here it’s obvious I mean it’s one sugar, maybe two sugars, one spoon or two spoons of sugar.
I like my toast done on one side – it’s quite a convenient phrase: I like my something done that way, for instance:
I like my coffee black.
I like my doughnuts covered with chocolate.
I like my breakfast to be served at 12.
I like my eggs sunny side up.
Let’s move on to the second half of the first verse. Listen and repeat:
See me walking down Fifth Avenue
A walking cane here at my side
I take it everywhere I walk
I’m an Englishman in New York
Fifth Avenue – I picked it because of the pronunciation. The word ‘avenue’ in particular. So it’s pronounced in two ways: It’s either /ˈævənjuː/ or /ˈævənuː/. The accent falls on the first syllable. The Fifth Avenue. In a sentence:
The Big Apple’s most famous street is Fifth Avenue, also known as Millionaire’s Row.
A walking cane here at my side – Two things here. The first is ‘a walking cane’. It’s a walking stick. A thin stick used to help somebody to walk. You might know the word ‘cane’ from a ‘candy cane’ or a ‘sugar cane’. An example:
She’s been using a walking stick since January.
And now, lets get down to the chorus. Listen and repeat:
Oh, I’m an alien,
I’m a legal alien
I’m an Englishman in New York
a legal alien – an alien is an individual who does not have U.S. citizenship and is not a U.S. national. So this definition comes from immigration law but it’s got another meaning as well. So, firstly it’s a person who is not a citizen of the country in which they live or work. Secondly, it’s a creature from outer space. A being from another world.
Alien is an adjective as well. It means strange and frightening; different from what you are used to. The synonym to this word is ‘hostile’. Something unusual or not acceptable.
It’s quite an alien idea to me.
The second verse, ya’ll! Let’s jump in!
If “manners maketh man” as someone said
He’s the hero of the day
It takes a man to suffer ignorance and smile
Be yourself no matter what they say
Manners maketh man – this is an idiomatic and very old expression meaning that a person may be judged according to his behaviour towards other people. What makes us human are our manners. This proverbial saying, origins in mid-fourteenth century.
It takes a man to suffer ignorance and smile – The real man smiles in trouble and gathers strength from distress. It takes a man. so you need to be a real man, a brave person to face ignorance and still stand smiling. Ignorance is a lack of knowledge or information about something. An example sentence:
Forgive my ignorance, all of this is new to me.
Modesty, propriety can lead to notoriety
You could end up as the only one
Gentleness, sobriety are rare in this society
At night a candle’s brighter than the sun
Modesty, propriety can lead to notoriety – Modesty. Modesty is a noun. The adjective, modest means not talking much about your own abilities or possessions.
She’s very modest about her achievements.
Propriety – moral and social behaviour that is considered to be correct and acceptable. Etiquette.
Some people questioned the propriety of her behaviour.
Now, ‘notoriety’ – the state of being famous for being bad in some way. The adjective, ‘notorious’ is more common in everyday language so I’ll give you an example with an adjective:
The bar is notorious as a meeting place for drug dealers.
Gentleness, sobriety are rare in this society – Gentleness. The quality of being calm and kind. Doing things in a quiet and careful way. For instance:
He will remain in our memories for his gentleness.
Sobriety is the state of not being drunk. To be sober.
They are celebrating 10 years of sobriety this Saturday.
Let’s move on to the final part of the song, to the bridge:
Takes more than combat gear to make a man
Takes more than a license for a gun
Confront your enemies, avoid them when you can
A gentleman will walk but never run
Combat gear – ‘gear’ has many meanings but here, what we’re dealing with is the equipment or clothing needed for a particular activity. Being a man is something more that putting on a combat gear. You don’t become brave, bold, heroic and manly by dressing up as a man. There’s much more to it. One example sentence:
Don’t forget to bring your running gear.
Confront your enemies – confront. Notice the pronunciation. Confront. There’s the /a/ sound in the second syllable. Confront. The accent is also on the second syllable. To confront, to deal with a problem or difficult situation.
I always knew one day I’ll have to confront my fears.
This is it! We’ve made it! Yet again. Good for you! Well done. Now let’s practice. Don’t go anywhere this is the essence of this episode. You speaking English out loud. Listen and repeat.
I don’t take sugar in my tea.
I like my coffee black.
The Big Apple’s most famous street is Fifth Avenue, also known as Millionaire’s Row.
She’s been using a walking stick since January.
It’s quite an alien idea to me.
Forgive my ignorance, all of this is new to me.
She’s very modest about her achievements.
Some people questioned the propriety of her behaviour.
The bar is notorious as a meeting-place for drug dealers.
He will remain in our memories for his gentleness.
They are celebrating 10 years of sobriety this Saturday.
Don’t forget to bring your running gear.
I always knew one day I’ll have to confront my fears.
Awesome! Now, go to your inbox, get the worksheet in order to test yourself. Complete the gapped lyrics while listening to Sting. If you aren’t a member of TOPeople download the worksheet from teacherola.com/146.
If you find this episode useful, tell your friends about my podcast, and share it with one person. It’ll help me grow and spread the message.
Thank for tuning in and I’ll see you next Wednesday! Happy learning. Take care! Stay fearless and say it out loud! Bye!